By Patricia A. Scheyer
NKyTribune reporter
The Campbell County Fiscal Court Mayors’ group meets quarterly to discuss issues pertinent to the county and the cities.
At its recent meeting featured speakers from the Northern Kentucky Area Development District gave an update on their Housing Inventory Study and their Regional Workforce Update.
“In the next 5 years, according to the study, the region will need to fill 6,650 units to support basic trends in population growth,” said Tara Johnson-Noem, Executive Director for NKADD. “That would equate to about 1300 units a year, again, keeping in mind that this is a study for 8 counties.”
She said this is a conclusion from Stantec, a national consulting firm that worked with NKADD, and she said she would explain how they arrived at that conclusion. The eight counties involved in the study were Boone, Kenton, Campbell, Grant, Carroll, Gallatin, Owen and Pendleton.
“Of those 6600 housing units that are projected to be needed, 3200 are projected for what they are referring to as workforce households, for those working individuals who are earning between $15 and $25 an hour,” she said. “They are also projecting a need for more one and two bedroom units.”
She did point out that these findings are not age driven.
“The workforce/job creation is outpacing housing creation,” she said. “So there’s more workers or people in jobs than there are places to live that they can afford.”
Single family homes are not always the ones with the household income and size that is desired by the growing labor force, a fact that is termed monoculture. Johnson-Noem said that the demand for three and four bedroom housing is outpacing their demand for that, while smaller housing units are needed.
“Currently, 60 percent of occupations within the 8 county area generate an average salary below $60.000,” Johnson-Noem explained. “Sixty- seven percent of job growth over the next decade is expected to be in the same sector, so right now there are 2.2 workforce earners per home affordable at that income level.”
The message, according to Campbell County Judge Executive Steve Pender, is that economic growth cannot be sustained unless the housing market is addressed.
“We have to have more units of housing, low-end and in the rental market, if there will be places to live for people who populate the work industries,” he said. “The usual interpretation when you have affordable housing is undesirables are going to be attracted into the community, right? But there aren’t so many undesirables that they could fill all of the units of housing we need. Our sons and daughters need places to live if they’re going to live in the area, and the workers we’ve been discussing.”
Correy Elmer, NKADD Associate Director for Workforce and NKWIB Director, took over to give a report on the District’ Workforce Development for the area.
“We have 11,600 something posted jobs as of today in the 8 county region, and as the judge said that there are about two openings for every available person,” he said. “If you think about that, it’s clear that we need more people.”
Elmer said they work through the Cabinet for Health and Human Services and they are responsible for several other federal contracts to help people find work.
He said there are several programs to make sure people can be matched to a job, but there is also a program called Navigo, which is in area high schools, and it provides career exploration so that students have a plan when they graduate. Most of the programs function with grants.
“Every single person matters in this situation,” he said. “Our vision is that every Northern Kentucky community thrives as a result of sustained economic prosperity, and our mission is to drive innovative policy and direct funding toward workforce investment through strong community partnerships to promote engaged employers, skilled job seekers and have collective impact.”
The Campbell County mayors’ group’s next meeting is scheduled for January 23.